Friday, November 20, 2015

ABC’s ‘Scandal’ Main Character Undergoes Abortion Set to ‘Silent Night’



ABC’s ‘Scandal’ Main Character Undergoes Abortion Set to ‘Silent Night’
by Daniel Nussbaum 20 Nov 2015
Thursday night’s episode of Shonda Rhimes’s ABC series Scandal was an hour-long advertisement for Planned Parenthood — so much so that the organization released a statement praising Rhimes and the episode immediately after it aired.

In the fifth-season episode, titled “Baby, It’s Cold Outside,” main character Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington), wife of the Republican U.S. President, undergoes an abortion while the Christmas hymn “Silent Night” plays in the background. Concurrently, Republican Senator Mellie Grant (Bellamy Young) successfully filibusters a bill that would defund Planned Parenthood, allowing it to keep its funding.

The episode was so overtly pro-Planned Parenthood that the organization issued a statement immediately after it aired to praise Rhimes and the show “for proving that when women are telling our stories, the world will pause and watch”:

Tonight, the millions of people who tune into Scandal every Thursday night learned that our rights to reproductive health care are under attack. Never one to shy away from critical issues, Shonda Rhimes used her platform to tell the world that if Planned Parenthood lost funding for contraception counseling, STI testing, cancer screenings, and safe, legal abortion — millions of people would suffer. And this episode wasn’t the first time one of Rhimes’ characters had an abortion, yet tonight we saw one of our favorite characters make the deeply personal decision that one in three women have made in their lifetime. We applaud Shonda Rhimes tonight — and every Thursday night – for proving that when women are telling our stories, the world will pause and watch. We just hope those in Congress — and throughout the nation — who are steadfast on rolling the clock back on reproductive health care access are taking note.

After getting the abortion, Olivia returns to the White House, where she sips on some red wine while the classical piece “Ave Maria” plays in the background.

In its own statement, Media Research Council blasted the episode:

Hollywood’s liberal values permeate movies and television. Last night’s episode of ABC’s Scandal was pretty much an hour-long advertisement for Planned Parenthood. In the most disturbing scene, the main character has an abortion to ‘Silent Night’ (a hymn celebrating the birth of Jesus) playing in the background. This is Hollywood’s moral depravity on full display.

In an interview with Time last year, Rhimes said that televisions shows should tackle abortion because it is a “polarizing issue:” “Because it is such a hot button issue, because people are debating it, it should be discussed. And I’m not sure why it’s not being discussed.”

Rhimes serves on the board of Planned Parenthood Los Angeles, according to Time. Earlier episodes of Scandal have included abortion-related storylines, and several characters in another one of her hit shows, Grey’s Anatomy, have revealed they have had abortions.

Actress Kerry Washington tweeted her support of Planned Parenthood last night, using the hashtags #IStandWithPlannedParenthood and #IStandWithMellie, in reference to Bellamy Young’s character who was filibustering in the Senate against defunding Planned Parenthood.

Scandal
Shonda Rhimes is the creator of Scandal, and a trustee at the American Film Institute.

Note: Robert A. Iger was a trustee at the American Film Institute, the president & COO for ABC Inc., is a member of the President's Export Council, and a co-chair for the Partnership for a New American Economy.
Ari Emanuel was a trustee at the American Film Institute, is the co-CEO & director for William Morris Endeavor Entertainment, and Rahm I. Emanuel’s brother.
Barbra Streisand is a William Morris Endeavor Entertainment client, and the founder of the Barbra Streisand Foundation.   
Barbra Streisand Foundation was a funder for the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
Open Society Foundations was a funder for the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
George Soros is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations.
Rahm I. Emanuel is Ari Emanuel’s brother, a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, the Chicago (IL) mayor, and was the White House chief of staff for the Barack Obama administration. 
Commercial Club of Chicago, Members Directory A-Z (Past Research)
Tuesday, December 17, 2013       
W. James McNerney Jr. is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, the chairman for the President's Export Council, and a co-chair for the Partnership for a New American Economy.
Robert A. Iger is a member of the President's Export Council, a co-chair for the Partnership for a New American Economy, the president & COO for ABC Inc., and a trustee at the American Film Institute.
Shonda Rhimes is a trustee at the American Film Institute, and the creator of Scandal.

1 comment:

Lana said...

This was the most disturbing show I've ever seen on TV. The morals of our country have declined to such evil. I will not watch this show again and I hope the Christian people of our nation boycott Scandal & it's sponsors. We need to take our country back.